Two Children Die in Missouri House Fire

Two children from southeast Missouri are dead and their grandparents are critically injured after a house fire in Poplar Bluff.

The fire broke out about 5:30 a.m. Sunday. The cause is under investigation but Fire Chief Ralph Stucker says several propane bottles inside the home exploded during the fire, making the blaze difficult to contain.

Three children were spending the night with their grandparents. Two of the children died — 10-year-old Phoenix Brannon and his 7-year-old brother, Jayden Brannon. A 3-year-old brother was rescued by the grandfather, Danny Pierce, and was unhurt.

Stucker says Pierce suffered burns when he went back into the home to try and save the other boys. Pierce and his wife, Erma, are hospitalized in St. Louis.